Cornell Cooperative Extension of the
~~~Commercial Horticulture Electronic Newsletter~~~
Volume 9, Issue 9
September 28, 2009
Participating Counties: Orange * Dutchess * Putnam *
Editor: Rosemarie S. Baglia
www.cce.cornell.edu
In this Issue:
Seasonal Update
Where did the summer go? A question that
many ask as we of course recognize that September brings the official passing
of yet another summer season. Looking back, most horticulturists may
agree that this might have been one of the coolest, wettest summers in recent
memory. GDD units register only 2647 to date at
With all of the moisture that we've received this summer its little surprise
that weeds seem to be everyone's mind. Calls to our diagnostic have
continued to involve questions about hard to manage types such as Nimblewill, Japanese stiltgrass,
and Nutsedge in lawns. On the insect scene,
we've observed a plethora of calls from the across the county regarding chinch
bugs on home lawns. One sample of turf that was submitted to us
featured such high populations of this insect that they were quickly found
crawling all over the table on which the sample was placed. The calls
about White grubs have generally been sporadic, with calls about foraging
animals (i.e. skunks) also coming in with equal frequency.
Finally, this time of year generally means questions from the industry about
becoming a certified pesticide applicator with the NYS Dep. of Environmental
Conservation. In
Written by Rick Harper & Jerry Giordano, Cornell Cooperative Extension
of Westchester County
Bio-Control Workshop Offered to Commercial Greenhouse Growers
Cornell Cooperative Extension along with NYS Integrated Pest Management and
the NYS Flower Industry, Inc. will be offering an informative bio-control
workshop where participants will learn how good bugs can be used to control bad
bugs. Participants will learn application techniques, and how to make sure
these insects are working to their advantage. Bio-controls for thrips, fungus gnats, aphids, and whitefly will help
growers to begin using bio-control methods in their own greenhouse.
The workshop will take place on Friday, October 23, 2009 from 9:30 am to 12:00
pm at Silverleaf Greenhouses located at
Two (2) NYS DEC pesticide recertification credits are offered in category 3a,
10, and 24, and one (1) credit in category 3c. This workshop is partially
funded by a grant received from the New York Farm Viability Institute.
Written by Teresa Rusinek, Cornell Cooperative
Extension of
Is Rubber Mulch Safe?
…via Fine Gardening online forum called the
Dirt:
Linda Chalker-Scott, associate professor and
extension horticulturist at the Washington State University Puyallup Research
and Extension Center, responds to this question:
Rubber mulches are advertised as permanent, effective, and safe materials for
use in landscapes and gardens. At first glance, it may seem that rubber mulches
are an environmentally friendly way of recycling used tires, but further
research indicates they are neither effective in long-term weed control (pretty
much anything will work in the short term) nor safe for the environment.
While recycling waste tires is an important environmental issue, the solution
is not to spread the pollution problem over our landscapes and gardens.
Hazards of rubber mulch
It’s flammable
A research study comparing several different mulches found that when rubber
mulch, which contains petroleum products, is ignited, it is more difficult to
extinguish than any other mulch–including wood chips.
It’s Toxic
Like any other material, tires and rubber mulches are eventually broken
down by environmental factors, such as sunlight, or by bacteria and fungi. The
chemicals that leach from tires are anything but benign. They include heavy
metals, such as aluminum, cadmium, chromium, molybdenum, selenium, and zinc.
Two other common rubber leachates are
2-Mercaptobenzothiazole (MBT) and polyaromatic
hydrocarbons (PAHs); these chemicals are health
hazards for humans and the environment.
It’s Destructive
Many vegetables and ornamentals mulched with rubber can accumulate high
levels of zinc, sometimes to the point of death. Other metals found in
decomposing rubber can also accumulate in plant roots, leaves, or fruit, depending
on the species. Acidic soils are particularly sensitive because heavy metals
are more available for plant uptake. Decomposing rubber mulches provide a
constant stream of toxic leachates into adjacent
aquatic systems. Research has also shown that entire aquatic communities are
injured or killed when exposed to these chemicals.
Submitted by Rose Baglia, Cornell Cooperative
Extension of
New E-mail Box for Reporting
Pesticide Data Errors
From the Office of Pesticide Programs:
"The Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) has established a central location
for users to report issues with pesticide program data contained in the Office
of Pesticide Programs data system, known as OPPIN or the Pesticide Product
Label System (PPLS). Data from OPPIN is available to the public through the
Pesticide Product Information System or through the National Pesticide
Information Retrieval System operated by
Please be specific. If you're in a product record, include the registration
number. If you're in an active ingredient record, include the AI name or
number. Include screen shots if possible. The more specific your report, the
better able we'll be to research the problem. Also, please identify yourself in
your e-mail including name and phone number so we can contact you if we need
further information about the issue you have identified.
Our goals are to promptly address data issues and to increase the reliability
of pesticide information. You can help us meet these goals by reporting issues
you encounter.
Questions or comments related to pesticide issues other than data errors should
be directed to http://pesticides.custhelp.com,
the Pesticide Programs frequent questions database.
Submitted by Jennifer Stengle, Cornell Cooperative
Extension of Putnam County
Why Invasive Plants Take Over
Written By Don Comis, April 30, 2009, www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2009/090430.htm
New research shows that two key causes of plant invasion - escape from natural
enemies, and increases in plant resources - act in concert. This result helps
to explain the dramatic invasions by exotic plants occurring worldwide. It also
indicates that global change is likely to exacerbate invasion by exotic plants.
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) ecologist Dana Blumenthal reached these
conclusions after studying 243 European plant species and their fungal and
viral pests, both in Europe and in the
The study was published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences.
Blumenthal, based at the ARS Rangeland Resources Research Unit in
Such an escape from numerous enemies is thought to provide exotic species with
an advantage over native species still burdened by their enemies. This is the
first study, however, to show that whether a plant escapes from a few or an
unusually larger number of enemies can be predicted from the type of plant:
Exotic species that are fast-growing and weedy are likely to have more enemies
to escape from.
Unfortunately, these are the same species most favored by global change.
Fast-growing weedy species thrive in environments with ample plant resources.
And global change increases key plant resources, such as carbon dioxide and
soil nitrogen, through increases in the greenhouse gases carbon dioxide and
nitrous oxide, respectively.
Fast-growing, weedy exotic species therefore have a double advantage in today's
world. Increases in resources enable them to outcompete
slow-growing plants. An escape from an unusually large number of enemies
enables them to outcompete even fast-growing native
plants. As global change proceeds, continuing increases in resource
availability are likely to exacerbate such plant invasions.
The National Science Foundation, the European Union, and the
Submitted by Rick Harper, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Westchester
County
Survey Reports Latest Honey Bee Losses
By Kim Kaplan, May 19, 2009, www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2009/090519.htm
Honey bee colony losses nationwide were approximately 29 percent from all
causes from September 2008 to April 2009, according to a survey conducted by
the Apiary Inspectors of America (AIA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
This is less than the overall losses of about 36 percent from 2007 to 2008, and
about 32 percent from 2006 to 2007, that have been reported in similar surveys.
"While the drop in losses is encouraging, losses of this magnitude are
economically unsustainable for commercial beekeeping," said Jeff Pettis,
research leader of the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Bee Research
Laboratory in Beltsville, Md. ARS is USDA's principal intramural scientific
research agency. The survey was conducted by Pettis; Dennis vanEngelsdorp,
president of AIA; and Jerry Hayes, AIA past president.
About 26 percent of apiaries surveyed reported that some of their colonies died
of colony collapse disorder (CCD), down from 36 percent of apiaries in
2007-2008. CCD is characterized by the sudden, complete absence of honey bees
in a colony. The cause of CCD is still unknown.
As this was an interview-based survey, it is not possible to differentiate
between verifiable cases of CCD and colonies lost as the result of other causes
that share the "absence of dead bees" as a symptom.
However, among beekeepers that reported any colonies collapsing without the
presence of dead bees, each lost an average of 32 percent of their colonies in
2008-2009, while apiaries that did not lose any bees with symptoms of CCD each
lost an average of 26 percent of their colonies.
To strengthen the beekeeping industry, ARS recently began a five-year areawide research program to improve honey bee health,
survivorship and pollination. Honey bee pollination is critical to agriculture,
adding more than $15 billion to the value of American crops each year.
The survey checked on about 20 percent of the country's 2.3 million colonies.
A complete analysis of the survey data will be published later this year. An
abstract of the data is available on line at: http://maarec.cas.psu.edu/pdfs/PrelimLosses2009.pdf
Submitted by Rick Harper, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Westchester
County
Note on Orthene TTO Discontinued in NYS
Source: Long Island Horticulture News, September 2009.
Most know by now that Orthene TTO is no longer
available and is listed as discontinued in
Acephate Pro, Avatar, and Lepitect.
Verify that labels include needed uses before purchase and application.
For more information on this product, go to: http://magritte.psur.cornell.edu/pims/
Submitted by Stephanie D. Mallozzi, Cornell
Cooperative Extension of
CERTIFICATION EXAM SCHEDULE
Pesticide Certification Exam Schedule
FALL 2009 - REGION III
COUNTY
Orange (845-344-1234)
Sullivan
(845-292-6180) Rockland
(845-429-7085) October 06,
2009
Westchester/Putnam
(845-278-6738)
Rockland (845-429-7085)
Dutchess
(845-677-8223)
SEATING MAY BE LIMITED. RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED BY ALL COUNTIES.
CONTACT THE CORNELL COOPERATIVE EXTENSION OFFICE WHERE YOU WISH TO ATTEND TO
SIGN UP.
The DEC charges $100 for the exam fee (If you are attending the pre-exam
training session, please bring a check or money order for the $100 exam with
you that day). Everyone will be required to pre-register with
the NYS DEC for an exam session whether taking an initial core and category
exam or adding a category. All registration materials will be due to the
regional office no later than one week prior to the exam session the applicant
would like to attend. A registration packet will be given to all
attending a training session. If adding a category,
contact the New Paltz DEC office at 845-256-3097 for
a registration packet.
About Pesticide
Certification
If you apply pesticides,
including weed-killers, weed and feed products, insecticides, fungicides, or
tick control products to customer's properties for hire, you or someone in your
company must be a New York State Certified Pesticide Applicator through the New
York State Department of Environmental Conservation and have your business
registered. There are now three levels of commercial certification:
applicator, technician, and apprentice.
For Commercial
Applicators
To be eligible to take the
exams to become certified, you must meet one of the following requirements:
· 3 out of the past 5 years of
verifiable experience as an apprentice working in the category applicant is
seeking certification in; or
· 3 out of the past 5 years as
a certified private applicator in a corresponding private category; or
· Certification in another
State with which New York has reciprocity; or
· if seeking certification in
the Sales Category - At least 3 years experience in the sale of pesticides, or
can demonstrate, through applicable training certifications or education
degrees, that one possesses appropriate technical background.
Certified
Pesticide Technician
· be at
least 17 years of age.
· 2 years of verifiable
experience as an apprentice; or
· completion of a 30-hr.
training course, approved by the Department or a baccalaureate or associate
degree from an accredited college or university in the area seeking
certification. These are offered at the following:
Westchester Community College: (914) 785-6830
Dutchess Community College: (845) 431-8904
ATC: (845) 657-7027
For technicians, once certified, desiring full applicator status the following
documentation is required: a letter indicating 2 yrs. of experience or 1 yr. of
experience plus 12 recertification credits. Experience and recertification
credits must be category or sub-category specific.
Pesticide
Apprentice
· Must be at
least 16 years of age.
· Must receive 40 hours of
pesticide use experience under supervision of a certified applicator and a
minimum of 8 hours of instruction on topics outlined in Section 325.18 of Part
325 Rules & Regulations relating to the application of pesticides, before
being able to apply general use pesticides under the off-site direct
supervision of a certified applicator.
· Documentation of the above
must be maintained by the certified applicator, and include: name & address
of apprentice; date(s) of instruction or observation; content of training and
certification category; instructor's name and certification identification
number; and an evaluation of the competency of the apprentice.
For Private
Applicators:
· Must be at
least 17 years old.
· Have at least one year of
full-time experience within the last five years in the use of pesticides in the
category in which certification is requested – OR
· Has completed a 30-hr.
training course, or has received an associate's or higher level college degree
in the area of which certification is requested.
For further information on eligibility rules and regulations, and fees, contact
the NYSDEC Region 3 Pesticide Staff at (845) 256-3097.
Eligible candidates for certification must attend a training session, and pass
two examinations, administered by the NYSDEC and held in conjunction with
Cornell Cooperative Extension. Once you determine you are eligible for certification,
contact your county's Cornell Cooperative Extension office for information on
registering for the training class and exams. Contact your local CCE educator
to find out training and exam dates for your county in the
Professional
Horticulture Programs of Interest
Cornell Turf Short Course
December 7-11, 2009
For more information, contact Frank Rossi fsr3@cornell.edu
Certified Landscape Technician Training
Contact: NYSTLA at 914-993-9455 or visit www.nystla.com.
An optional national testing program to recognize proficiency
of qualified landscape professionals.
Certified Nursery Professional Training Program
Contact: In Dutchess, Putnam & Westchester:
Scott Olivieri, 914-682-4224;
In Orange, Rockland & Ulster: Mark Masseo
845-658-9148
By passing this exam you can earn the title Certified Nursery Professional
(CNP). Contact your New York State Nursery and Landscape Association,
listed above, for more details.
Cornell Cooperative Extension County Commercial Horticulture Educators
Dutchess: Stephanie Mallozzi, sdm10@cornell.edu, 845-677-8223 x 104
Orange: Rosemarie Baglia, rsb22@cornell.edu,
845-344-1234
Putnam: Diane Olsen, dko3@cornell.edu, or Jennifer Stengle,
jjs95@cornell.edu, 845-278-6738
Rockland: Donna Cooke, dmc72@cornell.edu, or Paul Trader,
pwt2@cornell.edu, 845-429-7085
Ulster: Teresa Rusinek, tr28@cornell.edu,
845-340-3990
Westchester: Rick Harper, rwh26@cornell.edu, 914-946-3005
Sullivan: Marianna Quartararo,
mdq2@cornell.edu, 845-292-6180 x 112
Mention of trade names and commercial products is for
educational purposes; no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by
Cornell Cooperative Extension or
Pesticide recommendations are for informational purposes only and
manufacturers' recommendations change. Read the manufacturers'
instructions carefully before use. Cornell Cooperative Extension and
Some of the links provided are not maintained by Cornell Cooperative Extension
and
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